Automapping: a bold new world for business automation

Bozeman Council was looking to alleviate manual processes during GIS mapping, and opted for automation technology to help. Through a novel use of ThinkAutomation, Bozeman now has a portable, visual data processing tool that helps automate the mapping of their streets.

The challenge

If a member of the public or a company wishes to dig underground in Bozeman, they first need to contact the council call centre to check whether underground sewer and water lines are in the way.

Bozeman call centre agents then process these enquiries and send an email to a dedicated team, who manage them manually. The emails, or ‘locate requests’, are assigned to a driver to investigate. The driver must then travel to the location and mark out any utility lines with spray paint. As you can imagine, this process is time-consuming and requires manual input at multiple stages from start to finish.

The solution

Tired of drowning in emails, Bozeman Council completed some online research and found ThinkAutomation. The organisation took out a free 30-day trial to see if the product was a fit for handling their locate requests.

Bozeman Council created ThinkAutomation workflows to automatically mine emails containing locate requests for their key data. These emails are then recorded into a database and exported to a cloud vendor. Next, the cloud vendor maps each locate request via GPS. Rather than having data gathering in an inbox, Bozeman Council now has a portable, visual and efficient tool that everyone can track in the palm of their hand.

The results

Thanks to ThinkAutomation, Bozeman Council has:

A portable, visual and efficient tool that everyone can track in the palm of their hand

Streamlined processes that allow workers to spend more time on critical components rather than sifting through emails

Reduced repeat journeys, saving Bozeman Council time and money

Extended business process automation into other departments, including finance

Presented a ThinkAutomation use case at government conferences, due to its success

The feedback

“Within 30 days, it became obvious this software would be ideal for improving the efficiency of locate requests in Bozeman. The learning curve wasn’t too steep and we were able to get workflows working right away with the help of the user guides provided. There were a few times when we reached out for help, and when we did, the support we received was fantastic.

This new map showing where all the locate tickets are has been revolutionary. It means newer drivers, who may not be familiar with the area, can use the map to help them navigate. Equally, it’s easier for us to see clusters of work in a given area. Now, drivers can grab five locate tickets in the same area at one time, rather than making inefficient repeat journeys. We are saving time as well as fuel.”

Carrie Shockley, GIS specialist, Bozeman Council

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UK Company Registration Number 4525820 | VAT Registration GB797853061 All images used are for illustrative purposes. Since we are constantly developing new updates, and since we still support older editions of our products, the images shown onsite may not be an exact mirror of the latest version currently in release.